by M. V. Kasi
For a moment, Dharini felt ecstatic. Then immediately, she deflated. Because she knew Mrs. Sita Chandra wasn’t happy. Because her pretty teacher’s dimples were missing even though her mouth was stretched into a reassuring smile.
Unsure yet feeling brave, Dharini forged ahead with the truth. “He hurts me. And I want him to stop doing it,” she said in a shaking voice.
She couldn’t believe how relieved she felt as she said that aloud. She was tired of always keeping it a secret, and still continuing to get hurt in return. And now... she was so glad she could tell her teacher the truth.
“You uncle is hurting you?” Mrs. Sita Chandra asked.
Dharini shook her head vigorously. “No. No. Not my uncle. I love my uncle. But during the nights, my uncle turns into a monster. And that monster hurts me.”
There was another loaded silence.
“I see.” Mrs. Sita Chandra’s voice sounded grim.
Before Mrs. Sita Chandra could ask more, a small boy who was wearing a school uniform similar to what she was wearing while she was admitted to the hospital, rushed inside.
“Ma, are you coming? You promised you’ll take me to the movie this evening,” he said.
Dharini noticed that the boy seemed to be the same age as her. He was holding a small video game in one hand, and it was still making noises, like he had left it midway. He was frowning at his mother and then his gaze slowly shifted to the bed.
“What happened to you?” the boy curiously.
Dharini didn’t respond. Because she felt ashamed of telling him that she allowed a monster to hurt her during the nights. A familiar sickness and envy rose within her as she saw that boy. Unlike her, he looked like he didn’t have a care in the world and wasn’t scared of anything.
She desperately wished she had what he did. A person like his mother to love and be loved in return. And also freedom. How she wished she could be that carefree without living each day in fear of what each night would bring.
“Dharini got hurt, Jay. I need to ask her something. Why don’t you wait outside and I’ll join you in a few minutes.”
“You told that last week, Ma,” he whined. “And you went to help someone else. That’s why I came here, because I know you’ll stay here for long, and we’ll miss the movie this week too. I’m already upset that I missed watching my favorite hero’s movie during the first week.”
“Jay—"” Mrs. Sita Chandra called out his name in gentle admonishment.
Just then, there was a knock on the door and someone entered the room
It was Dharini’s uncle and aunt, looking worried and tensed.
As soon as Dharini saw her uncle, once again her stomach began to cramp painfully. It was so painful that she lost conscious.
* * *
Dharini tried to wake up again.
Struggling through the pain, she slowly pried her eyelids open.
This time she was definitely in an unfamiliar place. The paint on the ceiling was chipped and the fan looked dirty. Blinking her eyes multiple times to get rid of the foggy sleep, she sat up slowly on the bed. She could see a lot of other beds placed within the large room.
Where was she? She couldn’t ever recall being in the place before. She should have felt some sort of panic, but she didn’t. Maybe because it wasn’t her uncle’s house and he couldn’t hurt her any more.
Stepping down from the bed, she dragged herself to her feet and went towards what appeared to be a large bathroom. The place smelled strongly of some kind of cleaning solution, but she ignored it, and moved towards the washbasins to stand in front of a grimy mirror.
Slowly, she wiped the glass and stared at the reflection.
She couldn’t find the girl she had always seen. She looked... unfamiliar. In fact her head felt heavy and mind felt blank. Closing her eyes, she tried to recall her parents, but their images were distorted.
Panic ran through her as she tried to remember someone from her life. But it was no use. Her memory wasn’t allowing her.
Desperately, she tried to think of him—her abuser. But she couldn’t picture his face either. In fact she couldn’t even vaguely remember what he looked like. She could only recall the disgusting and soul - destroying things he did.
She gripped the sides of her head, squeezing her eyes shut as memories began to slip away steadily from her head.
All she could hear was, “I think it’s too late for the mother. Let’s try saving the baby.”
CHAPTER FOUR
Present
Ajay kept his eyes closed as he sat on a chair, while leaning the back of his head against one of the hospital walls. Somewhere at a distance, he heard a baby cry. Then suddenly, it hit him hard.
A few hours ago, he had more or less just ordered Sia’s and his child to be killed.
His chest tightened in pain and he wanted to break down at the loss. But he couldn’t afford to. Sia will need him more than ever now. He had to take charge and be strong.
He opened his eyes and looked towards Harsha. “I need your help to get rid of some of the baby items at my home. We need to get this done before Sia gets back from the hospital,” he said.
“Ajay...” he heard Jo saying gently.”You must know that Sia might not—"”
He turned towards Jo and cut her off before she could voice his worst fear. “No, Jo. All I know is that Sia is a fighter. She is going to beat the odds and come out of this as a winner,” he said with conviction.
And then, he turned towards Harsha. “It wasn’t Dr. Kranthi. It was his father. Jagadish Naidu.”
Harsha looked shocked with that information. “God, Jay. That means...”
“Yes. Sia hadn’t lied. The truth was distorted to the outside world by him.”
Harsha looked at him in sympathy.”I don’t know what to say,” he said.
“You don’t have to say anything. Just help me win this battle.”
Harsha nodded. “You know I’ll always help you when you need me to,” he replied.
Jo was watching them both curiously, but she didn’t ask them any questions.
* * *
After three more hours of waiting, the doors to the operating room opened. A familiar looking doctor came out with a grim look on her face.
Ajay’s heart sank and began to thud.
“Mr. Manthena... we were able to deliver you daughter safely. We tried our best with your wife. We even gave her the first priority like you had requested. But... as we had expected, she slipped into a coma. We weren’t able to revive her.” The doctor looked regretful as she delivered the crushing news. “You can see them both right now if you would like to,” she said softly.
Ajay wanted to rage and shout. He wanted to channel his hurt by blaming the doctor and the hospital. But he knew it was wrong, and also of no use. So, after nodding jerkily, he went towards the room where Sia was placed.
Harsha and Jo followed behind him, but he stopped them. “I want to be alone with her,” he told them, and entered the room.
Ignoring the cradle placed next to the bed a few feet away, he looked at his wife’s prone body.
Sia looked still and helpless. Unable to see her that way, he slowly crawled onto the bed next to her. Maneuvering around the IV tubes and other various cords attached to the monitor, he gently held her limp body in his arms.
He looked at her face, and felt a crushing guilt and helplessness take over him. Slowly, he shook those feelings off, and let determination take over. He couldn’t afford to be helpless right then. Especially when she needed him.
She would be okay. He knew she would. His wife was a fighter and he was determined that he would help her come back to him.
“I love you so much, baby,” he told her softly.
Sia’s eyes remained closed and she continued breathing evenly.
He kissed her forehead. And then placing his mouth next to her ear, he spoke softly into it. “Baby, I know you are hurting, and letting the darkness comfort you. I also know that you wanted to get away
from me because I hurt you. I understand all that, but I can’t allow you to remain like this.”
There wasn’t any movement from her. She remained still as before. But he was determined to get his point across in case she was able to listen through the deep sleep she had slipped into.
“Do you hear me, Sia?” he said in a stern voice. “I’m here to drag you back to me. So listen to my voice and fight for us. I’ll wait here for you, however long it takes. I’ll keep waiting until you come back to me. And after you wake up, we’ll fight together. I promise I’ll help you in every possible way to bring our enemies down.” He placed a kiss against her temple as he held her close.
He knew she had to come back. She just had to. There was no other choice.
CHAPTER FIVE
“Will I lose everything?”
Jagadish Naidu kept his attention focused on his lawyer. Ever since he got over the shock of coming face to face with his niece, he had spent several sleepless nights trying to save his birthright.
“Sir, the will prepared by your father is iron clad. I have already looked at the document several times for any possible loopholes. There are none. If that woman is indeed your niece, and is married with a child, then... you will have no choice but to give up your family estate and its possessions.”
Any other man would have raged or thrown a tantrum about the possibility of losing wealth and power of that magnitude. Jagadish Naidu didn’t. In fact he didn’t even twitch a muscle and kept on a stony expression.
Because only on the inside did his stomach churn and the denial boiled within.
The lawyer felt unnerved and impressed at the same time. Observing the man in front of him, he wasn’t surprised that Jagadish Naidu had a fanatic sort of following in the surrounding villages. He had a strange aura around him that could make a person believe in anything. He would definitely find success in his political endeavors.
“I have already checked with my trusted family lawyers and they have told me the same,” Jagadish Naidu said briskly. “The reason I wanted your opinion was because I was told that you are one of the best lawyers in India, and that you have taken over a lot of tough family and estate cases and won.”
Jagadish Naidu’s son who was also in the room with them, tried to intervene. “Papa, maybe we should first find out if that person is Dharini or not. If it is her, then—” Before he could complete, he was interrupted by the brisk shaking of his father’s head.
“Kranthi. Listen to me, son. This is bigger than simply finding out whether or not she’s Dharini. There is a lot at stake here.”
“But according to legal—”
“This estate and our people mean a lot to us, son. But unfortunately, there is a lot of money tied up to it, causing a few greedy people to try and claim it in whatever way possible.”
“But—”
“With the right kind of money, you know that a DNA testing can be tampered with.”
“But if we meet her, maybe we can find out.”
“You know it’s easy to draw information from a person. And being a doctor, you already know that a person can get a whole new face with plastic surgery. We simply cannot trust what we see and hear.”
Kranthi sighed, sounding tired and almost sad. “I suppose so.”
“And even if that woman happens to be Dharini—which is highly unlikely—we don’t know what her motives are. She might want to dispose of everything and return back to where she had come from. We are the rightful owners and we care about our organizations and our people. This is our legacy son. Your legacy. The one you can pass on to your future sons or daughters.”
The lawyer listened to Jagadish Naidu quietly. And by the look on Jagadish Naidu’s face, it was quite obvious that he loved his son. And also that he was prepared to go through any lengths to keep what he thought was rightfully his.
Jagadish Naidu looked back at the lawyer, “Find a way,” he instructed calmly.
“I will, sir,” the lawyer promised.
CHAPTER SIX
Ten days had passed, but Sia remained in coma.
During that time, Ajay had gone through every possible emotion. From being absolutely terrified about not seeing his wife’s smile again, to being overjoyed when the doctors had told him that there was some hope of her waking up as her vitals had stabilized.
But at the moment, he was just angry. Angry at himself and also at her. He went back to blaming himself for putting her through so much, and then, he blamed her for not wanting to fight back harder.
As he held one of her limp hands in his, the anger soon turned into despair. “Please wake up, Sia,” he begged.
“Jay...” a voice interrupted him. And when he ignored whoever it was, “Jay, please look at me,” the voice demanded softly.
Tearing his eyes away from his wife’s face, he turned towards the voice, angry at that person for not leaving him alone in his misery.
It was Jo. Seeing her, his anger dissipated. But soon, another feeling was trying to take over. Panic.
Jo was holding a small bundle in her arms. And he knew that the small bundle was his daughter. And he also knew that he was yet to see his daughter’s face or acknowledge her in some or other way.
But he couldn’t find the courage to do so. His chest cramped at the thought of Sia being stuck in this hospital bed with tubes coming out of her mouth and lying still, while their daughter demanded attention with her cries filled with health and vitality.
Turning away from Jo and his daughter, he looked at Sia’s still form again. “Wake up, baby,” he whispered again.
“Jay, look here,” Jo pleaded with him. “I know you are hurting. But you need to be there for your daughter. She needs you too.”
He knew Jo was right. He knew he was being a coward, but it was too painful to even think of looking at the infant’s face. Over the past ten days, thoughts of whether the baby girl resembled him or Sia ran inside his head. And if the baby looked like Sia, he knew he’d be even more devastated and finally break down.
“I c-can’t, Jo. I’m really grateful that you are able to take care of my daugh—” He broke off and took a deep breath. “Thank you for taking care of the baby, but I can’t look at her right now. I’m sorry.”
Jo’s face fell and she looked extremely disappointed with him, but with a look of determination, she moved closer, and stood right in front of him. “I know it’s hard, Jay. But do you really think Sia would be fine with this? With you not bothering to look at your daughter?” she asked. “No mother will ever understand or forgive someone who has rejected her child.”
Ajay’s mind rebelled listening to those words. He wasn’t rejecting Sia’s and his child.
Then what exactly do you call it? A voice in his head whispered.
Jo was right. He needed to man up and take responsibility even if it hurts him.
Slowly and reluctantly, he lowered his eyes towards the small bundle in Jo’s arms. He couldn’t see the face clearly, because the small infant was completely wrapped up in blankets from head to toe.
“Is she going to be... hungry soon?” he asked.
“No. I just fed her and changed her. She’s sleeping,” Jo replied softly. When he just stared at the bundle with longing and guilt, Jo stretched her arms towards him. “Go on. Take her, Jay.”
Nodding his head, he stretched his slightly trembling arms to carefully take the tiny bundle out of Jo’s hands. And then, he almost broke down when he finally saw his daughter’s face for the first time. He choked with an overwhelming emotion as he felt her warmth in his arms. His lungs constricted as though they weren’t big enough for the deep breath he had to take.
His daughter was perfect. Even though she was still wrinkled and red with a scrunched up face while sleeping, she was so beautiful. On instinct, he got up and held her closer to his chest, and rocked her in a soothing motion.
He stayed that way for a while. “I want to hold her for some more time,” he told Jo, not taking his eyes of his daughte
r.
Jo placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “She’s your daughter, Jay. You can hold her however long you want. I’ll be back in a couple of hours for her feeding.”
He looked at Jo with immense gratitude filled eyes. “Thanks Jo,” he said.
“You are welcome,” she replied with a smile.
“Tell me what to do. I want to take care of her.” He felt ashamed that he didn’t know how to take care of his own daughter. But Jo made it easy for him. She didn’t chide him and over the next few minutes, she gave him instructions on how to feed and change an infant.
“I don’t know what my daughter or I would have done without your help these past ten days,” he told Jo earnestly.
“You both would have done fine. And there is no need to thank me, Jay. You have always been my support when I needed it. This is simply me returning the favor for all those times,” she said, smiling.
“There is no favor to return, Jo. I’m lucky to have a friend like you. Even though I don’t deserve it for the things I’ve put you through lately.”
Jo smiled and touched his cheek gently, giving him a reassuring hug that included him and his daughter. “None of it was your fault, Jay. I understand.”
He wrapped his free hand around her. “Thank you, Jo. For everything.”
“You are welcome,” she murmured with a soft smile. “I’ll be back in a few hours. Don’t hesitate to call me if you need me for anything.”
“I will,” he said, and when they both turned towards the door so he could walk her out, their eyes clashed with a set of angry eyes.
The eyes belonged to a tall man who was giving them a furious look. Apart from Sia’s friend Anjali, Sia didn’t have any other visitors he didn’t know personally. Apparently, that was about to change.
Ajay didn’t know how he felt about that.
The tall man with a scar on his face sneered. “At least have the decency and respect to carry on with your cheating somewhere else. Not next to your wife, who by the way is in coma.” The man spat out the words.